PhoneNews.com has uncovered and documented new bugs in the wake of the fourth maintenance release for the Droid Eris. While discontinued, the device was launched on the same day as the Droid, continuing the drumbeat of questions as to if Droid Eris will be updated to Android 2.2.

Update MR4 for the Droid Eris delivered several fixes, after the much-criticized Android 2.1 update. The preceding MR3 release delivered Android 2.1, but brought with it many performance issues and situations where the phone would hang for long periods. The MR3 update was so buggy, that Verizon declared the MR4 update to be “mandatory” for all customers who had already updated to MR3.

Specifically, MR4, which was supposed to update the dialer pad to be usable… makes it freeze and lock up after placing multiple phone calls. Several phone calls appear to create a memory leak, causing the dialer app to become unusable. Power cycling the phone is the only solution currently.

Verizon Wireless declined to comment on if the Droid Eris would be updated to MR4, and the company’s public relations department reported that they were unaware of these new issues with the Droid Eris. The Droid, released on the same day as the Droid Eris, will be updated this week to Android 2.2.

Update: Verizon also clarified about another Droid Eris change that has been filling our inboxes. The Quick Search box inside of the Droid Eris’s web browser appeared to have lost its space key. Verizon clarified that it was moved to the number pad (the 12# key) to accommodate more buttons. This change was not clearly outlined in the release notes, but for users looking for the space bar… there it is.

In addition, HTC has also yet to comment as well on Android 2.2 for the Droid Eris. When either side is willing to confirm the future of Android 2.2 on the Droid Eris, we will follow up.

Christopher Price is the Founding Editor of PhoneNews.com. Today, he leads the team building iConsole.tv - a new kind of Android™ device. He still likes to pontificate... a lot. You can visit his personal blog at ChristopherPrice.net.

I have been having the same issues as described above since I upgraded my Hero to 2.1 (well, some of the issues – like the lagging dialer pad – were present before the upgrade). There are multiple instances a day where I want to throw this thing across the room. I have literally pressed a contact name from the call history to place a call and sat there and waited over 30 seconds before the phone actually shows the dialing screen.

Ben, we’ve only confirmed three issues with the Droid Eris, which we’ve covered in the article.

One HTC and Verizon have responded to (the difficult-to-access space key inside Browser Quick Search), the dialer pad issue, and the controversy surrounding Android 2.2.

The only reason we wouldn’t report on a compelling issue that we were aware of would be if we are still investigating. The Droid Eris’s keyboard is a perfect example of this, hence the article update following Verizon’s response to our inquiry.

I would like to know why i still cant update my contacts to facebook . I have the last update that came out and this issue was suppose to be solved, the only thing verizon has done for me is switch my device out .